Meg Ryan

During the 1990s, Meg Ryan was the queen of American romantic comedy - an updated Doris Day relentlessly touted as "America's Sweetheart" for her wholesome heroines in a steady string of mating mix-up...
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HOLLYWOOD, June 8, 2000 – What causes a big star to walk away from a movie, even after the contracts have been signed, and the checks have been written? Why on Earth would Mike Myers quit "Dieter," a pet project based on his "Sprockets" skit from Saturday Night Live, which was gonna bring him his first $20 million booty?
Myers is hardly the first star of his magnitude to walk away from a high-profile film. That said, it's not surprising he's not the first star to get sued for desert a movie, either. See, it's become something of a sport among some Hollywood types to exit a movie set, leaving the production in a lurch, scrambling to find casting replacements.
So, while Myers is busy preparing his legal defense, we thought it'd be fun and informative to look back some notable star walk-offs, and their ramifications:
When Kim Basinger backed out of her role in the low-budget film "Boxing Helena," she opened up a legal can of worms that ensnared her in a long court battle, eventually costing her a $3.8 million settlement and a bankruptcy filing. Not long thereafter, Whoopi Goldberg tried to get out of her commitment to star in "T. Rex," a comedy about a cop with a dinosaur for a partner, but the producers pointed to Basinger and threatened Goldberg with a similar fate. She did the movie, natch.
John Travolta likewise was sued, for $50 million, after he walked off the set of Roman Polanski's "The Double" in 1996, citing major-league conflicts with the director. Steve Martin was cast to replace Travolta, but the film became bogged down in pre-production troubles and the movie was eventually scrapped.
Frank Sinatra's bailout from the movie version of "Carousel" (1956) is legendary, as is the late crooner's reason for doing so. Frank was strictly a one-take actor, so when he heard the movie was going to be filmed twice, in regular Cinema-Scope and the then-new CinemaScope 55 format, he balked.
It may not be legendary, but when Keanu Reeves opted not to reprise his role in "Speed 2," it made headlines. You remember – the perennial dude wanted to record and tour with his alternative rock band, Dogstar, and to make little movies like "Feeling Minnesota." Notice that Sandra Bullock wasn't above re-hashing the runaway vehicle premise, and Jason Patric dutifully accepted the call to replace Reeves.
Everybody loves Meg Ryan, except perhaps a few directors and producers out there. Ryan has backed out of at least three films: "Steel Magnolias," "Housesitter," and "Maverick," and was replaced respectively by Julia Roberts, Goldie Hawn and Jodie Foster.

What's another week without a "Star Wars: Episode 2" casting rumor? The latest addition to the short-list of hopefuls for the role of Anakin Skywalker is current hot stuff Christian Bale who, in case you haven't been paying attention, plays the psychotic yuppie in the controversial flick "American Psycho."
MSNBC.com's gossip maven Jeanette Walls dropped the Bale scoop in her gossip column today, saying Bale is currently negotiating with George Lucas' Lucasfilm Ltd. to play the much-coveted role of the pre-dark side Darth Vader. And, during a recent publicity tour for "Psycho," the evasive actor answered questions about the Anakin rumors by saying, "You wouldn't have heard that from me. My lips are sealed. End of subject," according to Walls.
Other rumored Anakin candidates over the past few months have included "Dawson's Creek's" Joshua Jackson and James Van Der Beek, "American Beauty's" Wes Bentley and "General Hospital's" Jonathan Jackson.
The Anakin sweepstakes truly became a free-for-all when rumored heavy favorite Leonardo DiCaprio preemptively turned down the part in early April due to his "indefinite unavailability."
Whether there's any truth to the Bale gossip, the hard-bodied actor has proven himself capable playing sinister characters, and some fans apparently think he's well suited to play Anakin during his transitional phase, as he defects from the goody-good Force to don his black cape, mask and noisy respirator.
As one Netizen posted on a "Star Wars" usenet newsgroup (rec.arts.sf.starwars.misc), "I'd say Bale would make a very interesting Anakin. He certainly does dark well."
RYAN AND BEYOND: Daily Variety reported today that Meg Ryan is in talks with director Oliver Stone to star in the romance flick "Beyond Borders" with Kevin Costner.
Related story: Leo Drops Out of Anakin Sweepstakes

William Shatner is working again. The old-school "Star Trek" dinosaur has joined the cast of "Miss Congeniality" as an embittered beauty pageant host. The film stars Sandra Bullock as a stalwart FBI agent who goes undercover as a Miss New Jersey pageant contestant in order to thwart a planned terrorist attack.
Shatner's last film role was in the 1998 sci-fi send-up "Free Enterprise," wherein he poked fun at himself and his larger-than-life "Trek" character. More recently, he's been paying the rent with those name-your-price-for-plane-tickets commercials.
WATCH OUT, OBI-WAN:What's another week without a "Star Wars: Episode 2" casting rumor?
The latest addition to the short-list of hopefuls for the role of Anakin Skywalker is current hot stuff Christian Bale who, in case you haven't been paying attention, plays the psychotic yuppie in the controversial flick "American Psycho."
MSNBC.com's gossip maven Jeanette Walls dropped the Bale scoop in her gossip column Wednesday, saying Bale is currently negotiating with George Lucas' Lucasfilm Ltd. to play the much-coveted role of the pre-dark side Darth Vader. And, during a recent publicity tour for "Psycho," the evasive actor answered questions about the Anakin rumors by saying, "You wouldn't have heard that from me. My lips are sealed. End of subject," according to Walls.
Other rumored Anakin candidates over the past few months have included "Dawson's Creek's" Joshua Jackson and James Van Der Beek, "American Beauty's" Wes Bentley and "General Hospital's" Jonathan Jackson.
The Anakin sweepstakes truly became a free-for-all when rumored heavy favorite Leonardo DiCaprio preemptively turned down the part in early April due to his "indefinite unavailability."
Whether there's any truth to the Bale gossip, the hard-bodied actor has proven himself capable playing sinister characters, and some fans apparently think he's well suited to play Anakin during his transitional phase, as he defects from the goody-good Force to don his black cape, mask and noisy respirator.
As one Netizen posted on a "Star Wars" usenet newsgroup (rec.arts.sf.starwars.misc), "I'd say Bale would make a very interesting Anakin. He certainly does dark well."
RYAN AND BEYOND: Daily Variety reported Wednesday that Meg Ryan is in talks with director Oliver Stone to star in the romance flick "Beyond Borders" with Kevin Costner.

Will Jet Li kick Keanu Reeves' sorry butt? Probably just wishful thinking on our part, but today's Hollywood Reporter does give us hope. The paper says action star Li (late of "Romeo Must Die") is about to be wooed by the filmmakers behind "The Matrix" to appear in the hit movie's upcoming two sequels.
Reeves, for one, is already set to wear black again in the films (dubbed "The Matrix 2" and "The Matrix 3"). So are his cohorts from the original flick -- Laurence Fishburne and Carrie-Anne Moss.
WHO IS NUMBER 6? Patrick McGoohan, who in the 1960s starred in the cool, paranoiac and slightly incomprehensible British sci-fi series "The Prisoner," is set to executive produce a big-screen version for Universal Pictures. Today's Daily Variety says Simon West ("Con Air") will direct. No word yet on a star.
WE'VE COME A LONG WAY, BABY: Heather Graham is in talks to join Johnny Depp in the comic-book-inspired mystery "From Hell," today's Reporter says. Graham would draw her paycheck the old-fashioned Hollywood way -- by playing a hooker.
TIARA TROUBLE: Meg Ryan and Ellen DeGeneres are looking to team up in "Second Chance," a comedy about a beauty pageant scandal uncovered 15 years later. Ryan would also serve as a producer, the Reporter says.

So, is the "Friends" curse over?
This past weekend saw the nation's top box-office spots filled by "The Whole Nine Yards" and "Hanging Up" -- two films starring two, yes, "Friends." ("Yards," with Matthew Perry, took in a strong $15.9 million; "Hanging Up," with Lisa Kudrow, $15.7 million.)
"Friends" For a time, box-office analysts found themselves pondering if the six primary cast members of the popular sitcom might not have some type of hideous spell cast upon them, at least when it came to their big-screen forays. Alone, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Jennifer Aniston headlined such notable (or perhaps not-so notable) flops as "Commandments" (Cox's $488,000 box-office dud), "Three to Tango" (Perry's $10.5 million dud), "Ed" (Le Blanc's $6.2 million underperformer) and "Kissing a Fool" (Schwimmer's $4 million loser). (Remaining friend Kudrow has mainly -- and smartly? -- stuck to supporting roles in high-stakes studio films and lead roles in low-pressure indie films.)
But now with Perry and Kudrow's twin successes, can we finally call the "curse" off? Maybe, maybe not. After all, Kudrow's accomplishment came in an ensemble piece, didn't it? (In "Hanging Up," she takes third billing after Meg Ryan and Diane Keaton.) And wasn't Bruce Willis the real star of "Whole Nine Yards," not Perry?
"I think if you look at any of [the successful films starring 'Friends' members], the ones that have done well have been ensemble pieces," says Paul Dergarabedian, of the box-office tracking firm Exhibitor Relations. "However, if you look at 'The Whole Nine Yards' -- which isn't an ensemble -- a lot of women followed Matt from 'Friends' to the theater. Women cannot be underestimated in terms of their box-office draw."
Dergarabedian believes the "Friends" friends' historic lack of B.O. power -- the Cox-equipped "Scream" franchise, aside -- has more to do with choices and options, or lack thereof, than curses.
"I don't think [the poor box office performances] are necessarily their fault," Dergarabedian explains. "In the past, they didn't really have the clout to elicit a good script. They were basically using 'Friends' to get into theatrical films. Their choices are getting better and the material they are getting is better than it was."
Indeed, Kudrow scored last year in the A-list (Robert De Niro, Billy Crystal) comedy "Analyze This," which grossed a very friendly $106 million.
And while David ("The Pallbearer") Schwimmer and Matt ("Ed") LeBlanc are still searching for that elusive mega-hit, a noted expert offers some promising news. Hollywood-based professional psychic Madame Hart scoffs at the notion that our dear "Friends" were ever cursed at all.
"That doesn't really sound like a curse," Hart says. "It just sounds like they were in bad movies. If they were really cursed, then they would have experienced some serious problems, like loss of their careers, loss of property, their relationships could be destroyed, even death."
Apparently dying at the box office does not count.

Leave it to Hollywood to try to fool audiences into thinking that Walter Matthau and any woman could produce offspring in the form of Diane Keaton, Lisa Kudrow and Meg Ryan.
The three actresses, who, uh, aside from their gender have nothing but blond hair in common, co-star in Columbia Pictures' "Hanging Up" (opening today) as sisters dealing with an aging father (Matthau).
"Hanging Up" The Pointer Sisters they are not. How do three kids -- who in flashbacks appear close in age -- grow up into a mismatched trio wherein Keaton suddenly looks (at least) 15 years older than Ryan and Kudrow? Welcome to Hollywood-style gene splicing.
"Hanging Up" is just the latest example of mismatched sibling combos. Consider:
-- "Little Women": The lack of family genes is very obvious in Gillian Armstrong's 1994 remake featuring an Oscar-nominated turn by Winona Ryder. Ryder is but one of the four sisters; cast as her siblings are Claire Danes, Kirsten Dunst and Trini Alvarado. At least Ryder and Alvarado have the same hair color, but the fair red-headed Danes and dirty blond Dunst are off in left field, and on opposite ends at that.
-- "The Brothers McMullen": Actor-writer-director Edward Burns, Jack Mulcahy and Mike McGlone could never pass as brothers. In fact, Burns and McGlone, who reunite in the "Brothers McMullen" follow-up "She's the One," look absolutely nothing alike. Well, unless they had different fathers and mothers.
-- "Family Business": In this little-seen 1989 Sidney Lumet bomb, a son (Matthew Broderick) estranged from his father (Dustin Hoffman) enlists the help of his career-criminal grandfather (portrayed by a very Scottish Sean Connery) to pull off a heist. Broderick, Hoffman and Connery are never believable as family -- of this Earth, anyway. Connery begat Hoffman begat Broderick? Forget genetics, this is perhaps the most egregious example yet of star packaging gone awry. Speaking of Connery, witness the familial casting insanity in 1998's "Playing by Heart." Connery is married to Gena Rowlands, and their daughters are Gillian Anderson, Madeleine Stowe and Angelina Jolie. Uh, OK.
The problem also affects TV shows. Consider:
-- "Sisters": In this touchy-feely 1991-96 series, Sela Ward, Swoosie Kurtz and Julianne Phillips (Bruce Springsteen's ex-wife, the one with really full lips) are about the funniest mismatched trio on television since "The Three Stooges." The dark-haired Ward, who in her small cameo role at the beginning of the Harrison Ford starrer "The Fugitive" looks oddly like ice skater Nancy Kerrigan, would never be mistaken for the redhead Kurtz. Actually, does anyone in Hollywood resemble Kurtz?
"Eight Is Enough" -- "Eight Is Enough": Poor Adam Rich. He looked nothing like his non-mop-topped siblings on this 1970s show, and they looked nothing like him. (Which, at least, was consistent. The other faux siblings -- particularly the five actresses cast as the five Bradford sisters -- looked nothing like each other, either.) Apparently eight was not enough. "The Cosby Show" and even "The Brady Bunch" did it better.
-- "Family Ties": "I bet we've been together for a million years." So says the theme song from this 1982-89 sitcom, but take a look at the original Keaton siblings (Michael J. Fox, Justine Bateman and Tina Yothers) and you know that "Family Ties" even a million years couldn't make these three (later, four -- when Brian Bonsall joined the cast) look like family. Fox and the little Bonsall could pass as brothers. Heck, even Fox and Bateman could pass as siblings with a little stretch of the imagination, but where did Tina Yothers' Jennifer Keaton come from, with her big '80s blond hair? The adoption agency?
But fear not, for all is not lost. Casting directors have made some uncannily good decisions for siblings. Julia Roberts and Kyra Sedgwick work as sisters in "Something to Talk About." So the potential is out there.
And those Baldwin brothers sure do look a lot alike.

'Tis Valentine's Day, for loved ones to unite and lovelorn to show spite. In observance of this occasion, we find Tinseltown's love/no-love meter has been cranked up a notch.
Former bad-boy Christian Slater got married over the weekend to former television producer Ryan Haddon at the Four Seasons Hotel in Beverly Hills. The ceremony Saturday night was attended by 150 guests, according to his publicist, and officiated by author Neale Donald Walsch. The vows were taken from Walsch's book ``Conversations with God, Book 3.''
Slater, 30, was once as notorious for his bad behavior as he was for his wicked eyebrows. After squiring actresses (and co-stars) Winona Ryder, Samantha Mathis and Patricia Arquette as well as Christina Applegate and supermodel Christy Turlington, he was sued for palimony by longtime girlfriend Nina Huang after their 1995 split. He was later arrested for allegedly beating then-galpal Michelle Jonas and a police officer during a drug and alcohol-fueled brawl and spent three months in jail.
But that's all in the past; Slater's a family man now. He and Haddon, 28, have a 10-month-old son, Jaden Christopher, who will accompany his parents on their Hawaiian honeymoon.
ALL IN THE FAMILY: David Bowie and wife Iman have announced that they're expecting their first child in August.
Says the once-androgynous rocker, "It's been a long and patient wait for our baby, but both Iman and I wanted the circumstances to be absolutely right, and didn't want to find ourselves working flat out during the first couple years of the baby's life," Bowie, 53, said in a statement.
He and 44-year-old Iman, the Somali-born supermodel, were married in 1992. They have one child each from previous marriages.
Meanwhile, Oasis rocker Noel Gallagher suffered a crib-death scare over the weekend when 18-day-old daughter Anais suddenly turned blue and stopped breathing for about 30 seconds, reports London's Mirror. The musician phoned paramedics and passed instructions to his mother-in-law, who lay the baby on her back to clear the airways. The hospital gave Noel and the baby's mother, Meg Mathews, a breathing monitor in case the problem recurs.
COUPLINGS AND UNCOUPLINGS: London is also the setting for an engagement between Jamiroquai frontman Jay Kay and Brit TV star Denise Van Outen, according to the Sun tabloid. The paper reports that Kay (real name Jason Kay) proposed with a $15,990 engagement ring after popping the question over dinner at his home.
Across the ocean, all was not well on the Dominican Republic front, where singer-actress Diana Ross and husband Arne Naess formally divorced Friday. The nation, which is the place for quickie divorces as long as one of the spouses is present, granted the split to the couple, who were married in 1986 and separated in April. The former Supreme, 55, and Naess, 61, have two children; Ross also has three daughters from previous relationships.
But in New York, a happy marriage took place for, well, Sigourney Weaver's dog. The actress' pooch exchanged collars with a "studly" Italian greyhound, which she calls "the Mel Gibson of Italian greyhounds," in a pre-mating marriage ceremony (or "muttrimony") at an Upper East Side pet boutique, according to the New York Post. No word on the prenup agreement.
QUICK TAKES: Film critic Rex Reed was arrested Saturday after he was allegedly caught shoplifting three CDs from a Tower Records store. The New York Observer columnist, 61, was seen removing albums by Mel Torme, Peggy Lee and Carmen McRae and putting them in his jacket pocket. Security officials stopped him, and he was charged with larceny and criminal possession of stolen property ...
... Miramax Co-Chairman Harvey Weinstein emerged last week at a party for the New York Post's Page Six after months of rumors about the illness that kept him away from Sundance and the Golden Globes. The company spokesman maintains that Weinstein, 47, suffered a bacterial infection and is now back in the swing of things -- minus 40 pounds and wearing a nicotine patch to keep him away from those cigarettes.
... Leonardo DiCaprio is supporting Al Gore for president, according to an interview in the new Time magazine. The star of "The Beach" says he's on the verge of joining his campaign and almost took the stage during the New Hampshire primary to cheer on the White House hopeful. "I was going to just stand onstage and look hardcore," Leo tells Time. But likely he knew that would elicit fainting spells from the campaigner's daughters.
YOUNG AND RESTLESS: We'd like to take this time and promote some starlets who, despite their fame, looks and Internet downloads, are in the mood for love this Valentine's Day.
Perennially chirpy Jennifer Love Hewitt says, "I'm afraid that I'll never get married because I'm a hopeless romantic." She's currently seeing a musician she won't name, but as the 20-year-old recently revealed at a magazine luncheon in New York, "I'm going to end up alone when I'm 95, sitting home surrounded by 19 cats."
And teen pop queen Britney Spears, who has exchanged e-mails with Prince William, has confided her Valentine's Day wish to TV Guide Online: "My dream is to make a movie and to have a love scene with Ben Affleck. He is so real and so warm."
But if Ben's not available, she'd still like to date someone in show business. "Of course, if I met somebody at McDonald's and I fell in love with him, I'd have to go with my heart. But it would help being in the same industry, because you know what that person is going through, scheduling-wise," Spears, 18, says.
So basically, if you're a celebrity or a McDonald's cashier, you have a shot.

Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz have unwrapped their plans to co-star in "The Mummy 2," set to begin shooting this spring for a May 2001 release. The dynamic duo will reprise their roles as rugged hero Rick O'Connell and love interest Evelyn Carnahan.
Both actors had been expected to return to action after Universal received a commitment from "Mummy" writer-director Stephen Sommers six months ago. Also returning to the fold is co-star John Hannah. Daily Variety reports that it's his first $1 million deal.
Fraser's expected to receive somewhere in the $12.5 million range, up from the $5 million he collected for the first installment. The actor's most recent payday was $10 million for 20th Century Fox's update of "Bedazzled." The new story will follow the entombed terror as it resurfaces in London. The script reportedly includes a 9-year-old son for Fraser and Weisz's characters who shares his father's knack for adventure. The studio says possible locations for the shoot include Egypt, Morocco and London.
MORSE GETS 'LIFE': "The Green Mile's" David Morse is ready to be taken hostage in the Taylor Hackford-directed "Proof of Life." Morse will co-star with Meg Ryan, Russell Crowe and David Caruso. It's the third Castle Rock Entertainment film for the actor, after "The Green Mile" and "Extreme Measures." The story involves a hostage negotiator (Crowe) who falls for the wife (Ryan) of the person (Morse) he's hired to save.
'LOVE RETURNS' FOR BARRYMORE: Drew Barrymore's latest romance is an adaptation of Robert Nathan's 1958 book "So Love Returns." Variety notes that the "Ever After" star has signed on to direct and headline the supernatural love story after obtaining the rights from the author's estate.
The story involves a writer who can't get over the death of his wife. He isolates himself from the world and his two kids. But then he meets a magical woman (Barrymore in the flesh) who appears out of the sea to help him recover.
Barrymore will produce the feature with Middle Fork Productions, after passing on studios that wanted to turn her character into a mermaid. Budget for the indie project is $5 million.
STONE'S BROADWAY INSTINCT: Sharon Stone might be ripe for Broadway. The "Casino" star is considering a role in David Mamet's "Boston Marriage," with Variety reporting that she's already met with "The Iceman Cometh" stage director Howard Davies about the project. The sexy star could be just the right enticement. The play's involves two lesbians at the turn of the century.
TARANTINO THE ACTOR: "Pulp Fiction" director Quentin Tarantino will flex his thespian chops once again (after flopping in the Broadway play "Wait Until Dark") in a cameo for the Adam Sandler flick "Little Nicky." Sandler stars as the son of Satan in the pic, while Tarantino plays a blind preacher whom "senses" Sandler's presence.

It's not really a split 'til the British tabs weigh in with their versions of things, is it? And because we are, we confess, weak to the ways of the British tabs, we bring you this: Recently separated Meg Ryan and "Gladiator" Russell Crowe are "incredibly fond of each other." Now, we're not sure if "incredibly fond" is stiff-upper-lip code for "hot and heavy," we just know that the U.K. tabs are dogpiling on this week's revelation that Ryan and longtime hubby Dennis Quaid have called a time out.
London's Sun says Ryan has been taken with Crowe, with whom she's shooting the flick, "Proof of Life," in (where else?) Britain.
"Meg and Ryan are extremely close ... They just click," a source tells the paper.
Ryan and Quaid's camp declined to detail the reasons behind the couple's separation after more than nine years of marriage.
If rumor of a Ryan/Crowe coupling is shocking, consider all those stateside tab readers who've been lapping up those curious tab reports of a Crowe/Jodie Foster pairing.
Of course, it's not just British wags who are running with the Ryan/Crowe story. Last week, E! Online gossip Ted Casablanca noted that the two stars were spotted sharing a cigarette during a stroll in New York City.

Hollywood should finally have something to scream about at the box office this weekend thanks to "Scream 3." "This weekend there's going to be 'Scream' -- and then everything else," observed one distribution executive.
After two consecutive weekends where all it took was a single-digit gross to top the chart, Hollywood is gearing up for some big numbers. Soaring ticket sales are anticipated as Dimension Films -- Miramax's genre label -- launches the third and concluding chapter of its blockbuster "Scream" series at 3,467 theaters.
"It's probably going to gross what the next four movies combined gross," one insider said, noting that at mid-week the thriller had a 24 percent first-choice tracking score. (Translation: Of moviegoers polled, 24 percent said they would see 'Scream 3' before any other film in release).
"That certainly puts it up in the realm of [the] high-$20 millions or beyond, depending on what [the score] is by [opening day]," the insider predicted.
Others, who are less cautious, see "Scream 3" cracking $30 million or, possibly, even more.
Tracking data available this morning showed even greater strength on the "Scream 3" front.
"It's a 31 percent first choice overall and a 37 percent first choice for males," another studio executive confided. The exec said the flick was a 62 percent first choice for males under 25 and a 40 percent first choice for females under 25 -- "which makes it huge."
How huge is huge?
"No one can predict the box office," the executive said, noting that in terms of those who said they would "go to see the movie right away," the tracking showed a 42 percent overall response and a 49 percent overall male response. "What you can figure out from that 42 percent is that, if the marketplace is going to have a $70 million weekend, take 42 percent of that and assume that it's going to do, at least, $29 million. And for the heat of a film like this, I'd say it could be anywhere from $25-30 million.
Directed by Wes Craven, "Scream 3" stars franchise players David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox Arquette and Liev Schreiber. It's the first film in the series not to feature a script by teen horrormeister Kevin Williamson. Instead, "Scream 3" was cranked out by the would-be all-new Kevin Williamson: 27-year-old Ehren Kruger ("Arlington Road").
Asked about "Scream 3's" ultra-wide release, one industry source commented: "I'm not sure there's that many [theaters] worth having, but whatever. They're as wide as you can go. The tracking is very strong. The last one opened to nearly $33 million and this one is within striking distance of that."
"Scream 2" opened on Dec. 12, 1997, pulling in $33 million in its opening weekend. The original "Scream" bowed on Dec. 20, 1996, earning $6.35 million in its first weekend en route to a $103 overall domestic gross.
"After 'Scream,' it's the battle of the single digits," a distributor said. "I'm betting 'Eye of the Beholder' takes a bigger drop than 'Hurricane' does because 'Hurricane's' been pretty steady since the Golden Globes."
The distributor predicted "The Hurricane," starring Globe-winner Denzel Washington, would be down 15 percent from last weekend, ending up in the "high $4 millions." He said the Ashley Judd-toplined "Eye of the Beholder" (last weekend's No. 1) and the comedy "Next Friday" would end up in the "low $4 millions," with "Stuart Little" rounding out the Top Five.
Look for the lower rungs of the weekend's chart to be filled out by "The Green Mile," "Galaxy Quest," "Down to You," "Girl, Interrupted" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley."
Two films are scheduled to open in limited runs this weekend, but insiders say neither is tracking particularly well. The black comedy/adventure "Gun Shy," starring Sandra Bullock, will open in 296 theaters in the Top 10 markets.
"It's not even being tracked because it's going so limited," an insider said.
Also arriving, at about 500 theaters, is Fine Line Features' R-rated suspense/dark comedy "Simpatico." Based on the play by Sam Shepard, Nick Nolte, Jeff Bridges and Sharon Stone star in a story of love, betrayal and money set in the world of thoroughbred horse racing.
This weekend also will see Warner Bros. go wider with writer/director Barry Levinson's acclaimed ensemble drama "Liberty Heights."
As for next weekend? One studio source said there already were encouraging signs. Leonardo DiCaprio's "The Beach" is "a 9 percent first choice right now, followed by 'The Tigger Movie' with 5 percent first choice, which is actually pretty good tracking for a kids' movie. [The family comedy] 'Snow Day' is at 3 percent."
The source also reported that "Hanging Up," the Diane Keaton-Meg Ryan-Lisa Kudrow comedy, is already tracking a 6 percent choice - and it doesn't open until Feb. 18. Said the source: "So maybe people are perceiving it as sort of another 'First Wives Club' type with the three actresses."
Tracking scores typically increase as a film grows closer to its release date.

Title

Re-teamed with husband, Dennis Quaid for the dramatic "Flesh and Bone"

Began an off-screen affair with co-star Russell Crowe when they starred together in Taylor Hackford's "Proof of Life"

Cast as a struggling mother of two daughters in Jonathan Kasdan's directorial debut "In the Land of Women"

Provided the speaking voice of the title character in the animated feature "Anastasia"

Feature producing debut, "French Kiss" (also starred)

Directed by Jane Campion in the erotic thriller "In the Cut"

Played the central character of a woman whose husband has left her in Diane English's female ensemble "The Women," a remake of the 1936 play by Clare Boothe Luce

Breakthrough lead role opposite Billy Crystal in "When Harry Met Sally..."; film written by Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner; received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress

Portrayed Pamela Morrison in Oliver Stone's biopic "The Doors"

Appeared in Richard Fleischer's "Amityville 3D"

Attempted to change her screen persona by playing a cynical photographer in "Addicted to Love"

TV debut in the ABC Afterschool Special, "Amy and the Angel"

Had dramatic supporting role in Anthony Drazan's "Hurlyburly"

Played a pragmatic heart surgeon opposite Nicholas Cage in "City of Angels," a remake of Wim Wenders' "Wings of Desire"

Portrayed an Army captain under investigation in the Persian Gulf drama "Courage Under Fire"

First oncreen pairing with future husband Dennis Quaid, "Innerspace"

Portrayed the first female boxing manager in the film "Against the Ropes"

Renewed first-look production deal with FOX; Kathryn Galen replaced by Nina Sadowsky as president of Prufrock Pictures

Third teaming with Tom Hanks and writer/director Ephron in "You've Got Mail"; received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress

Starred opposite Hugh Jackman in the romantic comedy "Kate & Leopold"

Offered a fine dramatic turn as an alcoholic wife and mother in "When a Man Loves a Woman"; received a SAG nomination for Best Female Lead

Cast in a regular role as Betsy Stewart in the CBS daytime drama "As the World Turns"

Made film debut in George Cukor's "Rich and Famous" as Candice Bergen's daughter

First adult role in features, "Top Gun"; played wife of naval aviator Nick 'Goose' Bradshaw (played by Anthony Edwards)

Re-teamed with Quaid for the contemporary remake of "D.O.A."

Starred opposite Alec Baldwin in Craig Lucas' feature adaptation of his play, "Prelude to a Kiss"

First screen pairing with Tom Hanks in "Joe Versus the Volcano"; played multiple roles

Again paired with Tom Hanks in the hit romantic comedy "Sleepless in Seattle"; second collaboration with writer/director Ephron; received a Golden Globe nomination for Best Actress

Formed Fandango Films (renamed Prufrock Pictures), a production company based at FOX with business partner Kathryn Galan

Summary

During the 1990s, Meg Ryan was the queen of American romantic comedy - an updated Doris Day relentlessly touted as "America's Sweetheart" for her wholesome heroines in a steady string of mating mix-ups. Ryan embodied the cute, bubbly but befuddled objects of desire in Nora Ephron-penned hits "When Harry Met Sally" (1989), "Sleepless in Seattle" (1993) and "You've Got Mail" (1998) - films which earned her the rare following of both male and female fans who either wanted to take her home to mom or be her best shopping buddy. Ryan regularly sought to explore new territory outside of her well-worn but popular persona as a dizzy romantic stereotype, and she garnered some positive feedback for a SAG-winning performance as an alcoholic in "When a Man Loves a Woman" (1994) and a U.S. Army captain in "Courage Under Fire" (1996). Ryan's Hollywood A-List status took a dip in the new century when an extramarital affair with co-star Russell Crowe tarnished her girl-next-door image and spelled the end of her marriage to actor Dennis Quaid. When the scandal blew over and enough time had passed, she sought to reclaim her leading actress status, but by reinventing herself in more mature roles as middle-aged moms in comedic crisis.

Met while filming "Innerspace" (1987); Engaged in 1989; Married Feb. 14, 1991; Also worked together in "D.O.A." (1988) and "Flesh and Bone" (1993); Announced split in June 2000; Quaid filed for divorce on July 12, 2000; Ryan countersued in August 2000; Divorce finalized on July 16, 2001

Jack Quaid

Son

Born April 24, 1992; father, Dennis Quaid

Daisy Ryan

Daughter

Adopted from China in January 2006

Education

Name

Bethel High School

New York University

University of Connecticut

Notes

Named Woman of the Year by Harvard's Hasty Puddding Theatricals in 1994.

"She is not 'pert' or 'perky' or soft at all. Meg is not to be messed around with. Some people have a tough job coming to terms with that." - Tom Hanks quoted in The London Times, June 14, 1998

"I am just not a romantic. I am pragmatic or very sensible. But romantic? No. I can't think of the most romantic thing I've ever done or that has ever happened to me. I don't have my head in the clouds. My head is screwed on straight. I am not a sentimental person." - Ryan to Garth Pearce in The London Times, June 14, 1998

"She has a rare gift. Even some great actors, even movie stars, don't have her gift. They rarely let people look right through them. What she is in films is what she is, which is a rare quality. She says to the audience, 'This is me, and I'm not phony and you can trust me.' She's not hiding behind her parts - she IS those parts. I like that. In her roles, she's saying 'I'm also giving of myself 100 percent.'" - director Wim Wenders on Ryan quoted in The Los Angeles Times, April 12, 1998

"Fame is bizarre. As an end in itself, it's worthless. It's just a THING. It's also a test of character at times. Sometimes I pass the test; sometimes I'm a pain in the ass. Sometimes I'm like, 'Oh, God! I just want to buy some tampons!'" - Ryan to Vanity Fair Magazine, May 1995

"I'm not sure being in hits is anything to aspire to. But I'm lucky, because I really like doing comedies, and they're usually an easier sell than a drama. I'm not a snob about it. In fact, I think a television sitcom would be a great thing to do. I think it would be really fun to make your day all about finding the joke." - Ryan in Vanity Fair Magazine, May 1995

"I always think it's so shocking when couples break up and the men are instantly with other women. Women don't do that." - Ryan was quoted in 1993, and seen in Premiere Magazine, Oct. 2, 2002